Phonograph-horn.



F. i, W. WEISER.

PHONOGRAPH HORN.

APPLICATION FILED IIAV2I,I918.

' Y l R Iman im FRANK J. TRT. W'EISER, OF ELMHURST, ILLINOIS.

PHONGRAP H-HOEIN.

Specification of Letters Patent.

'Patented Dec. 3, 1918.

Application filed May 24, .1.918. Serial N0. 236,266.

To all ur/lro/n iz? may Gomera:

Be it known that l, FRANK J. W ilVe'tsnn, a citizen ot the llnited States, residing at llhnhursh in the county of upage and 'Stute ot lllinois, have invented certain new and useful improvements in phonograph- Itlorusot which the following is a specification. reference being had therein to the arcouipnnjfingz drawing.

hir invention relates to `phonograph horns. and its objcrt is to provide a soundcoutrol to eliminate the metallic character ot the tone ot the sound-'waves issuing from the throat ot the phonograph and to control the rohuue ot sound of the wares. The in rention consists in the matters hereinafter descrilfed and then pointed out iii the claims.

lu the acconil'mnying drawings, Figure l is a side View ot a phonograph with the horn in vertical section to better illustrate the tentures of in v invention; Fie'. 2 is a top View in longitudinal section on the line :2 2 ot Fig'. l through the horn and showing the closed und opened positions of the shutters in Ytull and dotted lines respectively, Fig. 3 is a se'zionai rien' ou the line 3 3 of Fig. 2. und Fig. -i inodiiication.V

ln the drawings the rctercnr'e numeral 5 indicates the traine ot a phonograph having the usnul turnftalile shaft ti for the revolving record. i the stylus or needle-arm and 8 'the Sound-box carried ou the hoilow tone-arm 9 which is supported in the customary manner on the traine at i und communicates with the hollow tl roat 1l ot the horn 12. The upper and lower sounding-boards 13 and il respe'tirely et the horn are tiered laterally to provide a wide mouth and the upper soundingdmard also flared upwai-diy to enlarge the mouth. 'their outer corners being' conne/'ted h); suitable uprights 15. Fetch side ot the horn is composed of a set of pivoted wooden shutters lh which are ot substaritiall)Y the sinne width but are of increasingT length it'rour the inner end oft the horn toward its inouth as lshown in Fig. .Flarh shutter pivotally mounted at the `top and bottoni of its inner end hy pins i7 which turn in supporting;f strips and i9 secured on the inner tacos of the side edges ot the sounding-hearth lf3 and T14 respectively. the pins lmving; 'telt-bushings 2() to prevent ani7 noise or rattle. The outer or tree end of each shutter. encept the outer pair at the mouth, overlaps the piroted end ot the ad jacent shutter when the. .shutters are. closed or collapsed, and each is provided with a sou'nd-dcadening strip'ot1 felt Q1. and when the shutters are turned inwardl \v on their pivots the)v extend more or less into the area of' the horn. ters may be thus provided on each side of the. horn though in practice I preferto use eight on eat h side. with the shortest shutters adjacent the thwart-opening and the succeeding ones increasing in length toward the mouth ot the horn. the width ot the shutters being such that wlen the3v are turned inwardhl to their extended position the shortest pair with their eltstrips will be. closed and stand across the throat opening. and the openings` between succeeding pairs will incr-casein width toward the mouth of the horn as shown in Figs. 2 and 3. Each shutter increases in length at its top t'ronl its inner pivoter-l end towardits free end as shown clearlyv in Fig. l. this upward slant or bevel correspoinling to the upward tlare ot the top souinling-board so that when the shutters ot euch set or bank stand in their full-line position in Fig. 9. they close the sides of the horn as shown in Fig. l, the topstrip t8 being slightly thicker than the dit'- 'terenee between the lengths ot' the piroted and free ends ot the shutters to allow the tops ot the latter to el ,ar the top soundingboerd when they are turned inwardly.

Each set of shutters on each side of the horn is provided with an operating bar *22 which is pivotally connected at 23 to the free end ot an arm 24 rigidly fixed to each shutter or its set, and each bar 22 is'oonnected at its inner end to the throat-piece b v a spring 25 which normally retracts the bar to maintain the shutters in their closed or collapse@` position as shown in full lines in Fig. The ba rs may be operated against the tension or torce ot' their springs to' more or less open or extend the shutters inwardly across the horn by any suitable means, and for this purpose l prefer to use a pull-cord 2G secured at its ends to the bars and which may be long enough to project to any convenientpoint, so that an operator may be at any distance from the machine and control the opening and closing of either or both sets of shutters. The springs normally actuatc each har to close or collapse its associated set ot' shutters to 'ferm the closed sides ot the horn as shown in full lines in ig. Z and afford an unobstructed area or passage of the same cross-sectional extent Any suitable nun.'bcr ot shuttirely. Also by thus breaking up the sound as if the sides were of ordinary solid construction, and when desired the operator may partly or Wholly open or expand either or both sets of shutters by moving them inwardly more or less so they will correspondingly break the-sound waves flowing out o i the throat and thus control the volume 'of the sound or -tone without choking it enwaves when they are expanded more or less the shutters eliminate the metallic and harsh sound or tone Vthat usually characterizes instruments of this kind, this function being aided by the felt strips. By having the shutters of gradually increasing length on each side they are made as a scale of music, and by having eight shutters in eaeh set or bank the scale corresponds to an eight note scale.

The shutters may be varied in number and in form. For example, a variation'in form is shown in Fig. 4: where each shutter comprises an inner leaf 16a and an outer leaf 16, each provided with a deadening-strip 2l; when the shutters stand with their outer leaves projected `outwardly their inner leaves overlap and form closed sides as shown, and when the shutters are moved in the direction of the arrow their inner leaves project into the area of the horn and their outer leaves overlap and form closed sides.

Inclaim:

l; A horn for phonographs and like inmemes@ struments having an upper and lower soundyarranged in opposite pairs, the shutters being of substantially equal width and increasing in length from the innermost pair to the outermost pair, deadening-strips on the free edges of the shutters, an operatingbar connected to'each set of shutters, and a spring normally actuating each bar to eollapse or close its associated set of shutters.

2. A horn for phonographs and like instruments having upper and lower soundboards providing a laterally and upwardly flared mouth, a supporting-strip on each edge of the upper board, a setof shutters pivotally mounted in each strip and in the lower board and arranged 4in opposite pairs, the shutters increasing in length from the inner pair to the outer pair and having their tops beveled from their inner ends to their outer ends to a. width corresponding with the thickness of said supporting strip,V and means for operating each set of shutters.

In testimony wliereol' I allix my signature l in presence of two witnesses. v

FRANK J. W. .WEISE l.

Witnesses: l

.Tous Jonsson, J. MoRoEuTs. 

